VoteVets.org came out with their first group endorsement of 2008 and Bill Cahir has made the cut.
Bill is a Marine Reserve Sgt. with two tours in Iraq under his belt and he is running in the PA 5th. You can read more about him on his website. He not only has the street cred when it comes to talking about Iraq, but with the work he did for Sens. Kennedy and Harris Wofford, he certainly knows what it is like to take on the tough fights in DC too.
So give him a look-over. Once you have, please go over to VoteVets.org and vote for Bill in their online contest. It could help him with receiving a $5,000 contribution.
The Pennsylvania Democratic Party is at it again with its new site, PA Building Blue. The idea came as a result of the Party staff hosting numerous trainings for their supporters where they were teaching them how to become more effective organizers and campaigners in their own neighborhoods.
In working with the Regional Field Orgnizers for the Party, they came up with a site that provides everyone a one-stop shop for all the on the ground organizing tools that the grassroots will need to build their communities blue. Mary Isenhour, the PA Party executive director gets it. If they build bluer neighborhoods everywhere, they build a bluer Pennsylvania. Its a year round job and its good that the PA Dems get that.
If you have other ideas for tools that the PA Dems could be providing its grassroots network, please be sure to tell them on their Message Board.
February 19 brings the release of a much anticipated (well at least by me and other Murphy supporters) book by Representative Patrick Murphy entitled Taking the Hill: From Philly to Baghdad to the United States Congress.
I had the pleasure of going to work with Patrick in June of 2005 when he was just getting started with his campaign and it has been amazing to see the journey he has taken to now being the first and only member of congress to serve in Iraq. I will never forget sitting in a coffee shop with Patrick that summer (we didn’t have an office) and talking to him about some of the big political players in Philadelphia and Washington not wanting him to run. They thought he was too young and too new to the political process. It was basically in their minds not his turn. We sat there and I told him not to worry about it. I told him to stay in this race and that if they wanted a guy who had served his country in a war to step aside, well, they were going to have to come and beat us. I was probably getting a little too big for my britches at the time as well but I am sure glad Patrick forged ahead and worked as hard as he did.
So if you get the chance, go out and buy Patrick’s book or order it online. I am sure you get a good feel for the type of honorable person I know Patrick to be.
Posted by Daren on February 18th, 2008 Categories: Daren|5 Comments »
With the retirement of several Republican members of Congress, a few seats are now looking like they may have some potential for a Democratic pick-up. Sure, they will be tough fights, but in this 2008 change year, it could happen if the Democratic candidates work their tails off.
Cahir is one of this years version of the “Fighting Dem.” He is a Marine who served two tour of duty in Iraq. No candidate in this race, either Democrat or Republican will be able speak from such experience as to the real plan needed to stablize the region, but bring our troops home safely.
And Bill is not new to taking on tough issues in Washington. He worked for Sen. Kennedy and then went on to work for one of my personal heroes, Senator Harris Wofford of PA. While with Sen. Wofford, Bill worked in taking on the special interest on health care reform. Even though the big insurance/drug companies prevailed, it has not detered Bill from his pursuit to make sure we provide universal health care to all Americans. I think I would stick with the Marine’s determination on this one.
Mike Waltner is running for Congress in the PA 3 (think Erie) and today he will be live blogging over at Daily Kos at 2 PM Eastern.
Mike is an interesting candidate when it comes to what many people may think of the Democratic Party. He is a preacherman. Not that he wouldn’t be, but he is completely in tune and in touch with all the issues not only facing the citizens of Northwest PA, but the nation. I have actually had the pleasure of speaking with Mike at length and really think his personality and approach to his candidacy are going to make a major impact in 2008. I think we will be hearing more about Mike in the future.
But don’t take my word for it. Go check out the preacherman politico over at dkos and judge for yourself.
There is this fun, new approach to work for all those who do business from home and rely upon the internet to get it done. It’s called a Jelly. The basic idea is that someone opens up their home so that other work-at-home individuals can gather and collaborate, brainstorm and have some face-to-face social interaction. We certainly love the world of tubes, but nothing beats getting together with real people.
Well, the Pennsylvania Democratic Party has realized this and have created a spin-off of the Jelly. They call it the BlogJam.
On the evening of January 3rd (same night as the Iowa Caucus) the PA Dems will be the first in the nation to ever conduct such an event. They are opening the doors to their headquarters to bloggers and online activists so that they get together, hear from the state party on what they are working on, brainstorm wth them on other ideas and live blog if they want. If you want to attend, you can register right here.
It has been a long time request for political parties to become more transparent and open and the Pennsylvania Democrats are leading the way.
Here are the details:
Thursday, Jan. 3, 2008
7:00 PM
300 North 2nd Street, 8th Floor
Harrisburg, PA 17101
717-901-8470
So sign up, bring your laptop and your ideas. The PA Dems will provide the wireless connection and the televisions for coverage of the Iowa Caucus. The PA Dems may not be first when it comes to selecting our next presidential nominee, but they can claim first in the nation status when it comes to the BlogJam.
As we are in the week of Thanksgiving, I thought it would be good to share the video that the Pennsylvania Democratic Party has posted up on their website.
Sure, its the website of a political party, but its good to see that even us political hacks can keep everything in perspective about the world around us. Once you watch the video I can guarantee you will want to share it with others and I encourage it.
Have a Happy Thanksgiving this Thursday. It is a great day to remind us to be truly thankful for all that we have and maybe do something for those who are without.
Just because there’s a writers’ strike in Hollywood, doesn’t mean everything you’re seeing is reruns… OPEN UP YOUR EYES! The 2008 presidential race is a whole new season, with an entirely different cast of characters. Don’t just assume the plot lines will follow the same old path. Besides, who doesn’t love a surprise twist at the end?
REALITY CHECK – THIS IS 2008, NOT 2004.
The role of John Kerry will not be reprised by Barack Obama. Despite raising the most money in the history of presidential politics and commanding a national audience with the celebrity nature of his campaign, Senator Obama has failed to overtake Senator Clinton in national polls. And after spending the most days campaigning in Iowa and the most money on Iowa TV, Obama has yet to see any measurable increase in support in the nation’s first caucus state. Last week’s debate was the third time this cycle the Obama campaign announced it was recalibrating strategy – and yet most voters are still waiting for “the gloves to come off.” Obama is now drawing the same sharp distinctions with Senator Clinton that Senator Edwards has been making for months – he’s just not as effective at it. Voters have been exposed to the message and the messenger – and they’re just not receptive. Perceived changes in the campaign dynamics are not going to send voters back to Obama after they’ve resoundingly decided to not support him.
Everyone loves a good conspiracy theory, but Hillary Clinton is not Laura Palmer, Dick Gephardt, Howard Dean – and there’s not a “swift boat” in sight on this set. The frontrunner in 2004 was the anti-establishment candidate. Now, the frontrunner is the face of the broken system in Washington. And here’s a news flash – asking questions about a candidate’s position on the issues is not attack politics, it’s responsible politics. Given the choice between a candidate who defends the broken system in Washington and a candidate who has the strength, experience, and courage to fight for real change, Democratic primary voters and caucus goers will choose change. For the past ten months, this race has been framed as a choice between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. But, as the past few weeks have proved beyond a doubt, the only candidate in this race who presents a formidable foil to Senator Clinton’s establishment candidacy is John Edwards. Voters know the system in Washington is rigged, and they will not support a candidate who defends the corrupt system when a strong alternative candidate is presented.
Starring John Edwards as… HIMSELF. He’s not playing a part. John Edwards has spent his life fighting on behalf of regular people and beating powerful interests. He grew up in a small rural town, went to public schools and was the first in his family to go to college. And despite his success, he hasn’t forgotten where he came from. That’s something voters who meet him recognize and respect – and its why Edwards has low unfavorables, high favorables, and is widely liked. Raymond is not the only one everybody loves. As the first candidate to lay out detailed plans on everything from providing universal health care to ending the war in Iraq to eliminating domestic and global poverty, Edwards has led the ideas race on the issues that matter most to voters. He has articulated his vision for a bold new direction for this country – and voters know that they can trust him to keep his word.
